The first scientific research took place in 1969 and was published in 1970 in Science Magazine (which is one of the world's top academic journals). By my latest count, there have been 340 peer-reviewed articles published on TM, many of which have appeared in highly respected journals. For those unfamiliar with scientific publishing, peer-reviewed means that each article is subjected to scrutiny by independent reviewers who are authorities in their field. - Dr Norman Rosenthal in Transcendence: Healing and Transformation through Transcendental Meditation, 2011, p14.

“John would have been the first one now, if he had been there, to recognise and acknowledge what Maharishi has done for the world and appreciate it" - Yoko Ono (2008) "This is one of the few things that has been given to me in my life that has real value to me." - Paul McCartney (2009)" “That was the main thing through the sixties I got into India. I think that was the ONE thing in my life, I could have done without everything else "- George Harrison (1987) "It gives me great pleasure to be part of this evening. I feel the aims of this charity [David Lynch Foundation which raises funds to teach one million at-risk children to meditate] are wonderful!" - Ringo Starr (2009)

"Everybody has a birthright to enjoy abiding peace and unbounded joy, which is the essential nature of his own soul. And I hold that everybody already possesse the capacity of enjoying it, because it is already there in the innermost recess of everybody's heart." -- Maharishi

The morality comes very naturally. All moral sense of behaviour comes out of inner contentment.

Morality and moral Life

Maharishi on morality and moral Life (from a press Conference and Assembly in the 60s in Canada)

Question: “You say that through your meditation a person can fulfil his desires. What type of (…) control do you have, so that the fulfilment of one person’s desires will not stop the fulfilment of desires of another person. (…) Would you have some type of control of morality for people?"

Maharishi: "The morality comes very naturally. All moral sense of behaviour comes out of inner contentment. A strong, more evolved man, more energetic, more intelligent, happier man naturally behaves in a right way.

No use telling a man to remain weak and do right! A weak man will naturally try to accomplish things that he wants to accomplish through any way. And a weak man naturally goes wrong this way or that way.
It is the weakness that lies at the basis of all immorality. All immoral behaviour is based on weakness, discontentment.

And when the mind goes deep into Being, it gains Bliss Consciousness. Bliss Consciousness develops contentment and contentment in fullness of awareness – one naturally behaves right. Naturally! Automatically one goes the right way. And this is a way to build the whole society on ideal of behaviour on moral standards.

Otherwise we see, the teaching of morality saying “do this and don’t do this” and “do this and don’t do this", people know that something is wrong, even they know that “if I do something, I’ll go to jail”. With all the knowledge, they are not able to resist the temptation. And that’s why telling the people “do this and don’t do this” and “do this and don’t do this” doesn’t much help to create a morality in society.

That is why International Meditation Society does not take upon itself to preach the code of moral living! It raises the level of consciousness and leaves a man to be automatically moral. It’s a great thing!”

It raises the level of consciousness and leaves a man to be automatically moral. It’s a great thing!

---oOo---

Personal note : The thing I like most about Maharishi's message is often the other way round. You have to gain the silent state of awareness, the pure Self, to be good (bit by bit). It isn't a moral teaching--it is how to be moral without trying. For me morality is the effect of coherence and the experience of bliss consciousness, not the cause of it. It somes naturally as a side effect of the direct experience of pure consciousness.